University of Alberta set out to build a world checkers champion. He succeeded. In 1994, CHINOOK, the program written by Schaeffer and his group, won the Man versus Machine World Checkers Championship. (Although CHINOOK has now mostly retired from championship checkers, it is still possible to play CHINOOK. To play CHINOOK or just see information about CHINOOK and checkers in general, go to www...

Monitoring of water cover and shorelines at a global scale is essential for better understanding climate change consequences and modern human disturbances. The level and turbidity of the surface water, and the background objects in which they interact with, vary significantly at a global scale. The existing water indices applicable to detection and extraction of water cover at local and regiona...

The efforts of Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and Stephen Breyer to provoke examination of the vitality of the American judiciary’s independence have inspired two conferences,1 which in turn have produced many thoughtful papers and much commentary. I have been asked to respond to one such paper offered by Professors Paul Carrington of Duke and Roger Cramton of Cornell.2 These two distinguished sc...

Doctors without anatomy are like a blind that deceives the road in the desert. Traditionalists perceive a decline in Anatomy knowledge and attribute it to the modern methods of teaching and learning. Reformers point to evidence that modern approaches offer equivalent results in assessment when compared to traditional courses. It seems that there are three aspects that need to be resolved: when,...

Endogenous production of nitric oxide can be detected and monitored in exhaled air of men and animals. The main objective of this review was to discuss if nitric oxide in exhaled breath condensate is a useful tool when investigating respiratory dysfunctions in intensive care units. Specialized literature reveals an increasing interest in the use of exhaled breath condensate as a non-invasive me...

The measurement of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is recommended for the diagnosis of decompensated heart failure, the prognosis of chronic heart failure is worse if BNP is increased and studies suggest that BNP is useful to guide therapy. A study by Di Somma and colleagues adds to the body of evidence showing that patients with a marked decrease in BNP concentrations during their hospital ad...